Russell Scores Again, But Not On The Court

By Addam Francisco

Lets take a second to step away from the statistics, criticism and all aspects of basketball and acknowledge a huge milestone reached by one of our teams stars. This past weekend was a very happy one for the Westbrook and Earl family, but in some cases bad news for women who were interested. Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook is off the market after he finally marries his beautiful college sweetheart Nina Earl in a beautiful Beverly Hills hotel. Russell and Nina met back in their days at UCLA, where they both played on the basketball. Sounds something like a Love and Basketball story remake.

The lovely couple got hitched outside of the historic Beverly Hills Hotel Saturday afternoon. Many of Russell’s friends and family attended, including his brother Ray, of course and notable names like Serge Ibaka, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Kevin Love and Dorrell Wright. Yes, with James Harden came his significant other, Kloe Kardashian and Serge brought his lady, R&B singer Keri Hilson. It was like a celebrity showcase within a wedding.

Nina showed out by wearing two dresses, one by Vera Wang and the other by Monique Lhullier. The dresses were beautiful… Even I could see that and I'm your typical guy when it comes to wedding fashion. With the bride being so stunning, you know that the suave man, Russell Westbrook (that always seems to think outside of the box when it comes to fashion), had to be stunning as well, wearing a tuxedo designed by his favorite designer, Tom Ford. As the two walked down the aisle, Beyonce was playing and Lauryn Hills’s “Nothing Even Matters,” played for the couples first dance. That wasn't it though, Miguel surprised everyone with a late night performance during the reception.

This is a huge step taken by Russell. We as fans have seen him grow from the time he was a 19 years old bachelor just out of college to now, 26 and married. I think this major step by Russell may roll over to other players on the team in long-lasting relationships, players like Serge Ibaka… Maybe? I also think it will motivate other players to possibly get serious with someone and take that next step in their life. Coming into Oklahoma City, Russell, Kevin and Serge were very young, teenagers to be specific, but now they are NBA veterans and getting up there in age (for NBA standards). This marriage was obviously strategically planned just before training camp, which is set to start in October, giving a month for a possible honeymoon.